February 2011 Blog Posts (23)

A 448-kilowatt commercial solar system was powered up last Tuesday at the San Bernardino Corporate Center near Mill Street and Toppecanoe Avenue. The project came out of a partnership of the Novato-based SPG Solar Inc., the nonprofit for Sustainable Communities Reinvestment Partnership, known as SCRIP Inc, and the Inland Valley Development Agency (IVDA), the regional joint powers authority overseeing redevelopment in and around the former Norton Air Force Base.

Before energy became a hot topic, no one cared about the electric meter. It was the box on the house we all ignored except the guy from the utility who dodged the barking dogs to take a reading from it once in awhile.

It is a sign of our times that this box now inspires enough emotion for people to take to the streets. Protesters gathered outside the California Public Utilities Commission last week claiming that new metering technology not only makes people sick, but also violates…

Anyone attending the RESNET conference in Orlando next week and who are currently providing IR inspections as either a BPI or HERS Rater inspector, might want to sit in on the presentation of the new IR Standard Interium Guidlines currently being approved. Rogge Miller from GWSSI, John Snell from Snell Group and myself will be going over the IR portion of the Chapter 8 Performance Testing and are hoping for some solid discussions and feedback from those interested in how this is going to…

Yesterday I received an email forwarded to me from a co-worker. The email itself was a request from a journalist seeking information on a variety of topics related to eco-friendly housing from both an owner and builder perspective. Some of the questions of interest to me included “Does a small budget limit going green or can a little go a long way?” and “Where is… Continue

A buddy of mine, Dennis, that’s an exterminator called me the other day while I was standing in Home Depot. “Jon, I’ve got a problem and I need some of your building science expertise.” The problem he was having was being caused by some granules he had put down to repel some flying squirrels. The granules…

A weatherization program in South Carolina that has made area homes more energy efficient could impact the local economy for decades to come. The Orangeburg-Calhoun-Allendale-Bamberg Community Action Agency program is funded by federal stimulus dollars and has improved 179 houses for low- to moderate-income homeowners over the past year.

You might think by this headline that I’m about to rant about the news regarding energy efficiency policy that was circulating last week. President Obama outlined a plan called the Better Buildings Initiative to…

SolarReserve, a U.S. developer of utility-scale solar power projects, announced today that it has received its final Certificates of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) by unanimous decision (5-0) from the Arizona Corporation Commission for its 150 megawatt (MW) Crossroads Solar Energy Project. The approval includes the associated transmission line connecting the project to Arizona Public Service's transmission grid. This final approval follows this past December's unanimous decision (11-0) from… Continue

It's been cold out this winter, so I've been talking a lot about heat. Invariably when I talk to people about how heat pumps can keep your home warm in winter, they get a look of bewilderment on their faces and ask how that's possible. No one ever tells me that they're confused about how a…

ACI's Energy Upgrade California, held January 10-11 in Los Angeles, presented a pretty good picture of how the Energy Upgrade California program will roll out across California. Currently an investor-owned utility (IOU) pilot program, it offers modest rebates for whole house improvements. There are a variety of rules and regulations, and paperwork, and processes that were all laid out pretty clearly at the conference. In addition, the local municipalities talked about their related programs and… Continue

When Obama unveiled his “Better Building Initiative” last week, it wasn’t just the usual architects, builders, and energy efficiency service companies that perked up with interest. A whole new segment of energy efficiency companies saw opportunity: the innovators.

Emissaries from the high tech world, the innovators are a growing force in energy efficiency. They bring web and wireless to what was once a field more about windows and weatherization.

A few weeks ago I was interviewed on the“Green, Better, Best” radio show. I was asked in advance to provide a "top ten” list of energy saving tips for the home. I've been asked this many times before, and I always feel like I’m being asked to discover the “easy” button. When it comes to energy generation and efficiency, there are no silver bullets that will take down the beast, but with good planning…

I am composing this blog post on a computer that was likely assembled in a factory that runs on electricity made from coal. The aluminum for the case and other parts of the computer probably came from a smelter powered by natural gas. The electricity powering the computer here in California could come from a combination… Continue

No one would disagree that this is a good time to be in the energy efficiency business. Another report, this one out last week, signals just how good.

Conducted by Comverge, the survey of more than 100 US utilities found that 92% plan to increase their efficiency budgets by at least 10% in 2011. Comverge also found that 22% plan to boost their EE budgets by more than 20%.…

The Executive Roundtable, made up of renewable energy industry leaders, met in order to discuss the future of the renewable energy industry. Due to the recent recession and talk on Capitol Hill to reduce or cut incentives, the renewable energy industry faces a defining moment that could lead it in different directions. However, the industry remains one of the U.S. economy's most consistent job creators and experiences much support among politicians and the public.

In 2008, the solar thermal industry in the United States underwent a period of unprecedented growth. The Great Recession caused the economic situation to worsen in 2009, lowering consumer spending as well as decreasing the demand in the solar thermal industry. Slowly in 2010, the solar thermal industry began to recuperate and experienced an optimistic growth in which solar thermal installations began to increase in popularity. Consumers began realizing that solar thermal installations are a… Continue

Solar energy has consistently grown 33% in the past thirty years within 1979-2010. It is projected to be over 40% for this decade. With an estimated 32 GW of solar power installed globally, 7.2 GW was installed last year alone, according to John Addison, publisher of the Clean Fleet Report.

Solar energy is becoming more marketable by the day, and now represents a large portion of new construction related jobs. If you are a contractor or interested in becoming a contractor, be a part of… Continue

The "National Solar Job Census 2010: A Review of the U.S. Solar Workforce" is a first-of-its-kind report that quantifies the current employment and projected growth rate of the United States' solar energy industry. The Census' study is based on a statistically valid sampling of 2,400 solar companies throughout the nation. The Solar Foundation, Green LMI Consulting, and Cornell University among others surveyed the companies and concluded that the solar energy industry expects to increase their… Continue